About this artwork
This head of an official, with his striped wig tucked behind his ears, comes from a larger statue that was likely once displayed in a tomb chapel. Such sculptures served as receptacles for the ka (soul). To animate statues, priests performed a ceremony called the Opening of the Mouth so that the individual represented could benefit from offerings left by the living and breathe, eat, hear, and see in the afterlife. Although this man’s name, which would have been written on the statue, is now lost, the sculpture’s large scale and the choice to carve it from costly granite suggest that he was a high-ranking official.
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Status
- On View, Gallery 50
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Department
- Arts of Africa
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Culture
- Ancient Egyptian
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Title
- Head of an Official
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Place
- Egypt (Object made in:)
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Date
- c. 1773 BCE–1650 BCE
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Medium
- Granite
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Dimensions
- 33.8 × 46.3 × 26 cm (13 3/4 × 18 1/4 × 10 1/4 in.)
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Credit Line
- Museum Purchase Fund
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Reference Number
- 1920.261
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IIIF Manifest
- https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/121767/manifest.json
Extended information about this artwork
Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.